
Q 161 
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Copy 1 


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BY CLARA. MALLORY 











































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HARLOW PUBLISHING COMPANY 

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 







A Comprehensive Guidebook 
for 

Elementary Science 

in the 

Fourth Grade 


By 

CLARA MALLORY 

Elementary Supervisor. Beaumont City Schools 
with the co-operation of 

Mabel Bean, Zelma Spencer, and Catherine Touchstone 
i . I I 

This guidebook belongs to 


School _ 

City_State. 


HARLOW PUBLISHING COMPANY 
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 
1934 









CONTENTS 


Page 

Parts of a Flower. 1 

Types of Flowers . 4 

The Cat-Tail . 8 

The Goldenrod and Dandelion .... 10 

The Aster........... 15 

Ferns . 15 

Fungi -. 17 

Oaks .-... 19 

Pines . 21 

Elms ........ 22 

Care of Trees...... .. 23 

Leaves ..—-.. 24 

Seeds ....:... 26 

Uses of Wood __ 27 

Insects _ 29 

The Grasshopper__ 31 

The Dragon Fly or Mosquito Hawk .. 33 
Wasps .. 35 

Galls . 36 

Birds . 38 

The Robin . 39 

The Meadow Lark . 40 


Page 


The Humming Bird ... 42 

The Red-Winged Blackbird . 43 

The Mocking Bird ___ 44 

The Red-Headed Woodpecker . 47 

The Cardinal ...... 48 

Bird Houses __ 49 

Bird Stories_______ 51 

Soil ...-... 52 

Minerals . 53 

Pocks __!..... 53 

Stars ....... 56 

Stars and Planets .. 57 

Wind ... 59 

Airplanes .. 62 

Spring Flowers ..... 63 

The Violet . 65 

The Wild Rose . 66 

A Puzzle ..... 67 

Painted Turtle . 68 

The Bat .. 70 

Spiders ....... 71 


©ClA 75142 


Copyright 1934 by 

HARLOW PUBLISHING COMPANY 


104546 












































PARTS OF A FLOWER 



The petals are the colored leaves of the flower. These attract the bees and other 
insects to the flower so it can get some pollen. The sepals hold the petals' together. The 
stamens are the little factories where the pollen is made. We call the part of the stamen 
that holds the pollen, the anther. The little stem that holds up this anther is called the 
filament. The pistil has three parts: the stigma, the style, and the ovary. The stigma is 
the top of the pistil; it is sticky and the pollen easily sticks to it. The style is a tube that 
leads to the ovary which is the seed pod in which the seeds are made. The ovules and the 
pollen grains together form the seeds. 


On i the above picture write the following names in their correct places : 


1 . 

Petals 

6 . 

Sepal 

11 . 

Corolla 

2 . 

Calyx 

7. 

Ovary 

12 . 

Pollen 

3. 

Pistil 

8 . 

Ovules 

13. 

Style 

4. 

Stamens 

9. 

Stigma 

14. 

Stem 

5. 

Anther 

10 . 

Filament 

15. 

Leaf 


Fill in the blanks with the right words : 


1- The_attract insects to the flowers. 

2 . The seeds are formed by the , 

3. All the petals together form the__ 


1 











4. Bees get_ and_from flowers. 

5. Pollen is made by the_ 

6 . The petals are held together by the_ 

7. The flower is held up in the air by the___ 

8 . The stigma is part of the__ 

9. Each flower must have _ •' • _Lto form seeds 

10. We call all the sepals together the__ 

Color your flower. 

How the Flowers Grow 

This is how the flowers grow: 

I have watched them and I know. 

First, above the ground is seen, 

A tiny blade of purest green, 

Reaching up and peeping forth 
East and West, and South and North. 

Then it shoots up day by day, 

Circling in a curious way 
Round a blossom, which it keeps 
Warm and cosy while it sleeps. 

Then the sunbeams find their way 
To the sleeping bud and say, 

“We are children of the sun 
Sent to wake thee, little one.” 

And the leaflet opening wide 
Shows the tiny bud inside, 

Peeping with half-opened eye 
On the bright and sunny sky. 

Breezes from the West and South 
Lay their kisses on its mouth; 

Till the petals all are grown, 

And the bud’s a flower full-grown. 

This is how the flowers grow; 

I have watched them and I know.—Gabriel Setoun 


2 










Here is a simple flower. Draw the pistils and stamens for it. 


In one space draw a pistil with all its parts. In the other, a stamen with all its parts. 
Label each part drawn. Color your flower. 


Pistil 


Stamen 


“Little flower; but if I could understand 
What you are, root and all, and all in all, 

I should know what God and man is.”—Ten nyson 


3 






The Flowers 


All the names I know from nurse: 

Gardener’s garters, Shepherd’s purse, 

Bachelor’s buttons, Lady’s smock, 

And the Lady Hollyhock. 

Fairy places, fairy things, 

Fairy woods where the wild bee wings. 

Tiny, trees for tiny dames— 

These must all be fairy names! 

Tiny woods below whose boughs 
Shady fairies weave a house; 

Tiny treetops, rose or thyme, 

Where the braver fairies climb! 

Fair are grown-up people’s trees, 

But the fairest woods are these; 

Where, if I were not so tall, 

I should live for good and all.—Robert Louis Stevenson 


TYPES OF FLOWERS 

There are many shapes and forms of flowers. Many plants have large blossoms 
shaped like a funnel or trumpet. We find such flowers on the trumpet creeper, morning 
glory and jasmine vines. Some plants, such as the sunflower, the daisy and the aster, 
have a large flower made up of long petals which we call ray flowers around the outside 
of the flower and little disk flowers on the inside. We call this type of flower a composite 
flower head. 

Another type of composite flower is made up of tiny tube-shaped blossoms with a lit¬ 
tle pistil and stamens in each. Some examples of this type are the thistle, the dandelion and 
the iron weed. 

Other plants, such as the wild carrot, wild parsnip and wild onion, have flat clusters 
of little flowers but are not considered to be composite. These clusters are called umbels. 
Plants, such as larkspur, bluebonnets, snapdragons, and blazing star, have the flowers grow¬ 
ing on a long, slender stem. We call this the spike type of flower. 

Examine the pictures on the next page very carefully and you will see these types of 
flowers. See if you can find other flowers near your home that are like these pictures. 


4 



OR TRUMPET 


1. Underline the names of the composite flowers in this list: 

sunflower dandelion 

asters violet 

dogwood primrose 


2 . Underline the trumpet-shaped flowers : 


violet 

goldenrod 


asters 

trumpet creeper 


bindweed 

sunflower 



blue vervain 
vetch 

Indian blanket 


sweet pea 
bluebonnet 


SPIKE 

TYPE 


3. Underline the umbel type flowers: 
verbena asters 

4 Underline the flowers of the spike type: 


goldenrod 


primrose 


bluebonnet 

thistles 


asters 

snapdragon 


5. Underline the flowers that are harmful: 


morning glory 
vetch 


dandelion 

thistles 


fleabane daisy 
salvia 


dandelion 


Indian blanket 
goldenrod 


6 . How do bees and other insects help flowers?. 


7. Are morning glories and bindweed kin?_ 


“In all places then and in all seasons 
Flowers expand their light and soul-like wings, 
Teaching us by most persuasive reasons, 

How akin they are to human things.”—bong fellow 









Talking in Their Sleep 


“You think I am dead,” the apple tree said, 

“Because I have never a leaf to show—because I stoop, 

And my branches droop, and the dull gray mosses over me grow 
But I’m all alive in trunk and shoot; 

The buds of next May, I fold away— 

But I pity the withered grass at my root.” 

“You think I am dead,” the quick grass said, 

“Because I have parted with stem and blade; 

But under the ground I am safe and sound 
With the snow’s thick blanket over me laid. 

I’m all alive, and ready to shoot, 

Should the spring of the year come dancing here,— 

But I pity the flower without branch or root.” 

“You think I am dead,” a soft voice said, 

“Because not a branch or root I own! 

1 never have died, but close I hide 

In a plumy seed that the wind has sown. 

Patient I wait through the long winter hours; 

You will see me again—I shall laugh at you then, 

Out of the eyes of a hundred flowers.—Edith M. Thomas 


6 



Label the parts of this flower. Be sure to spell the names correctly. 

Some of the following statements are true and some are untrue. Write yes in the 
blank following the true statements and no following the untrue. 

.1 The corolla is the petals of a flower. _ 

2 . Bees get pollen from the stem of a flower. _ 

3. Ovules make seeds for the flower. V’ : - - ' : % 

4. There are just a few stamens to each flower.. _ 

5. Some flowers have guide lines._ 

6 . All flower stems are rough and hairy. _ 

7. Each pistil has eight parts. _ 

8 . This flower is trumpet shaped. _ _ 

9. These flowers are compound s, c" -. ~ AT *; _ ' . 

10 . The sepals hold the petals together. _ 


7 














THE CAT-TAIL 



The Cat-tail is a very common plant found in marshy places. It does not like to 
grow with its roots under water but likes to be very near water. • The cat-tail leaves are 
very long, narrow and flat. Out toward the end the leaf is very limp and easy to bend, but 
where the leaf joins the stem of the plant it curves to fit the stem, and is hard and brit¬ 
tle. The leaves are arranged alternately on the stem. The root of the plant is fleshy with 
many rootlets that can push out through the mud in which the plant grows. 

The flowers of the cat-tail grow on the long slender stem around which the leaves are 
wrapped. There are two kinds of flowers on the stem. The upper part of the cat-tail 
holds the staminate flowers; flowers that have only stamens, that make pollen. The low¬ 
er part of the flower, the part that looks like plush, holds the pistillate flowers. These 
have only pistils in them. They make the seeds of the flower. They have no petals, 
sepals or stamens. They get pollen from the staminate flowers above them or from those 
of another plant. The wind carries the pollen for this plant. 


8 



















1 . 


Use the following questions in observing the plants that have been brought to class: 

What sort of a root has the cat-tail? Why is this root especially adapted to the soil 
where cat-tails grow? 

2 . The cat-tail plant. 

Are the leaves arranged opposite or alternate? Tear off a few of the leaves and de¬ 
scribe the difference between the lower and the upper end of a leaf as follows: 

How do they differ in shape?__ ~ 

Texture? _'__ 

Pliability?______ 

Color? _1______ 

Width?_____ 

Does each leaf completely encircle the stalk at its base ? _ 

Of what use is it to have the plant stiffen where the leaves clasp the stalk?_ 


3. Take a single leaf, cut it across near where it joins the main stalk and also near its tip. 
Cook at the cross section to see how the leaf is veined. What do its long veins or ribs 

do for the lea f ? __ - ' _ - 

Split the leaf lengthwise and see what other support it has. ' ~ . : , 

Does the cat-tail leaf break or tear along its edges easily ? _ ■ 

4. The pistillate flowers which are in the plush of the cat-tail have no sepals, petals, odor 

or nectar.. Do you think their pollen is carried to them by the bees ? ■" V 

How is it carried ? ____ 


Color the cat-tails on page 8 with your crayolas. 

1. Color the leaves green. 

2 . Color the ripe cat-tail on the right hand side of the picture brown with a yellow top. 

3. The middle cat-tail is green with a yellow top. 

4. The cat-tail on the left hand side of the picture is ripe and shoidd be colored brown 
with a yellow top. 


9 























THE GOLDENROD AND DANDELION 


We have just learned that some flowers are composite, that is, made up of a lot of 
tiny flowers ( florets ) put together. We are to study two of these types of blossoms, the 
goldenrod and the dandelion. I’m sure you have seen these common flowers often. 

The goldenrod has two kinds of flowers, ray and disk flowers. If you will examine 
a flower head of the goldenrod, you will find it looks like a little yellow daisy. Pull it 
apart and you can see both the ray and. disk flowers. 

The dandelion does not have the separate ray and disk flowers, but it has little tube¬ 
shaped florets arranged in circles on its flower head. You can se$ the little pistil in each 
floret if you will carefully pull the big flower head apart. See if you can do this. 


THE GOLDENROD 



This pretty flower grows wild. It can be found every fall. It grows in fence corners, 
along the road side, in fields and woods. The goldenrod is made up of many little flower 
heads which grow along a slender stem very close together. Each flower is made up of 
two kinds of flowers—ray flowers, and disk flowers. 

Another name for ray flower is banner flower. In order to make the bees and other 
insects come to the plants with pollen from other goldenrods, the ray flowers are set close 
together to make the bright yellow color that we see when we look at a branch of this 

10 




flower. There are as many as fifty-six kinds of goldenrod, but all of them have two 
flowers in each flower head. 

The pollen of this flower is yellow and such insects as bees, bumblebees, carpenter-bees 
and many others visit the plant to get nectar from the disk flowers. In this way, the pol¬ 
len is taken from one flower to another and the seed is made. In the late fall the seeds 
ripen. Each seed has a number of silken threads fastened to it that help the wind to carry 
it along through the air to a new place where it falls to the ground and buries itself into 
the earth, to grow into a new plant next fall. 

The goldenrod is an autumn flower. Its stem is slender and rod-like with rows of 
tiny yellow flowers. Each of the tiny little flowers grows close together so it can attract 
insects to come and gather their pollen and nectar. The tiny flowers along the stem are 
yellow. It gets its name from being such a stout flower that grows everywhere. 

In the days of Queen Elizabeth, they used the goldenrod for healing wounds. Many 
people call the goldenrod “make-whole” because of its healing powers. 

“I am alone with nature 

With the soft September day; 

The lifting hills above me, 

With goldenrod are gay.”—Mary Clemmer Ames 


On Page 10 is a picture of the goldenrod for you to color. When you have finished, 
answer these questions orally in class. 

1. How are the flower heads set upon the stems ? ■' - _ _ __ 

2. What is the general shape of the flower branches ? - _:_1 

3. Are the flower branches long or short?_ - _;____ 

4. Is the stem smooth, downy or covered with bloom?___:_ 

5. What is the shape and form of the edges of the lower leaves?_ 

After you have returned from a field trip, answer these questions : 

1. Where do you find the goldenrod growing?_;-2—.- 

2. Do you find one kind growing alone, or several kinds growing together ?_ 

3. Do you find any growing in the woods? —-*-:---—-—— 

If so, how do they differ in shape from those growing in fields?- 

4. How many kinds of insects do you find visiting the goldenrod flowers?- 


11 













5. How many kinds of galls do you find on the goldenrod stems and leaves? (See page 10.) 
Where ?___ 

Complete these sentences : 

1. The goldenrod is an_flower. 

2. The tiny flowers along the stem are_ 

3. It gets its name from being such a ■ _ 

4. In the days of Queen Elizabeth, they used it for_ 

because of its__ 

5. Many people call it___;_ 


12 










THE DANDELION 



“There’s a dandy little fellow, 

Who dresses all in yellow, 

In yellow with an overcoat of green; 

With his hair all crisp and curly, 

In the springtime bright and early 
A-tripping o’er the meadow he is seen, 

Through all the bright June weather, 

Like a jolly little tramp, 

He wanders o’er the hillside down the road. 

Around his yellow feather, 

The gypsy fireflies camp; 

His companions are the wood lark and the toad.”—Gilbert M. Garabrant 
The edges of the dandelion are notched in a peculiar way, so that the lobes were, by 

13 





some one, supposed to look like a lion's teeth; thus the plant was called in France dents-de- 
liony (teeth of a lion) and from this, the name dandelion has been made. The leaves are so 
bitter that grazing animals do not like to eat them, and thus the plants are safe, even in 
pastures. 

Before a dandelion head opens, the stem, unless very short, is likely to bend down to 
protect the young flowers, but the night before it is to bloom, it straightens up; after the 
blossoms have come out it may again bend over, but straightens up when the seeds are to be 
cast off. 

It oftens takes an hour for a dandelion head to open in the morning, and it seldom 
stays open longer than five or six hours; it may require another hour to close. 

After all the florets of a dandelion family have blossomed, they retire again into their 
green house and start making seeds*. The seeds with their balloons are set SO' as ,to make 
an exquisite filmy globe; and now they are ready to go sailing off. (Observe a seed 
through a lens). The balloon is attached to the top of the beak as an umbrella frame is 
attached to the handle, except the “ribs” are many and fluffy; while the dandelion young¬ 
ster, hanging below, has an overcoat armed with grappling hooks, which enables it to cling 
fast when the balloon chances to settle to the ground. 

The following are the ways by which the dandelion gets the better of us and takes its 
place in our lands: 

It blossoms early in the spring and until snow falls, producing seed for a long season. 
It is broadminded as to its location, and flourishes on all sorts of soils. 

It thrusts its long tap roots down into the soil, and thus gets moisture and food not 
reached by other plants. 

Its leaves spread out from the base, and crowd and shade many neighboring plants 
out of existence. 

It is on good terms with many insects, and so has plenty of pollen carriers to make 
strong seeds; it can also develop seeds from its own pollen, and as a last resort it can de¬ 
velop seeds without any pollen. 

It develops almost numberless seeds, and the wind scatters them far and wide and 
thus takes possession of new places. 

It forms vigorous leaf rosettes in the fall, and thus is able to begin growth early in 
the spring. 

h How are dandelion seeds carried? _ 

2. What part of the flower gives it the name of dandelion?_ 

3. Why do animals leave this plant alone? _ 

4. Why is it hard to pull up this plant?_ 

5. What kind of flower is the dandelion—simple or compound?_ 


14 







THE ASTER 


The aster is another very common fall flower. It grows in fields, on the banks of 
streams and along the roadside. The stem has many branches with the small, daisy-like 
flower heads rather thick upon them. This little flower is also composite. It has yellow disk 
flowers and white, yellow, or purple ray flowers. See if you can find some asters in the 
field or vacant lot near your home or school. It is easy to tell the ray flowers from the disk 
flowers. If you have a microscope, you can see them better. 


FERNS 

We all like ferns because they grow well inside our houses and look pretty. We call 
ferns flowerless plants because they never have any flowers. If you see a fern-like plant with 
flowers you may know that it is not a true fern; for the true fern never has any flowers at 
all. 

Of course it cannot make any seed to grow new plants since it has no flowers; so it makes 
little spores that take the place of true seed. These spores are made in little fruit dots on the 
back of some of the fronds. Look at your ferns at home ancF find some fruit dots. When 
these are ripe they turn brown and pop open around the sides. The spores are in tiny spore 
cases. These little cases pop open also and the little spore, which is as fine as dust, puffs out. 
The spores, when they reach the ground, make a thick leaf-like plant which later sends up a 
real little fiddle head that becomes a new fern plant. 


Fj;rn Song 

Dance to beat of the rain, little Fern, 

And spread out your palms again, 

And say, “Tho’ the sun 
Hath my vesture spun, 

He had labored, alas, in vain, 

But for the shade 

That the cloud hath made, 

And the gift of the Dew and the Rain.” 

Then laugh and upturn 
All your fronds, little Fern, 

And rejoice in the beat of the rain!—John Banister Tabb 


15 


Words to learn to spell: frond 
spores 


stipe pinules 

fiddlehead fruit dots 

blade 



1. Label the parts of the fern. 

2 . Ferns grow by means of spores, 
seeds, roots, fronds. ( Underline 
the correct word.) 

3. The new or young fern frond is 

called a __ 

4. Ferns grow best in: cold, wet, warm, 
damp, sunny, dry, shady places. 
(Underline the correct word.) 

5. The green part of the fern is the 


6 . Spores grow in_on the 

frond. 

7. Spores are carried by: animals, 
wind, water, birds. ( Underline the 
correct word.) 

8 . The_Jholds up the blade 

of the fern. 

9. Ferns cannot have seeds because 


10. Does the fern grow like the one in 
the picture right from the spore? 


16 
























FUNGI 

Fungi make up one-fourth of our known plants. They have no green coloring mat¬ 
ter and therefore have to live on living things ( parasites ) on dead things ( saprophytes ). 
Some fungi cause dead organic matter to decay so that the elements can again be used in 
plant or animal growth. Without fungi there would be no decay, humus soil and fermen¬ 
tation and very few contagious diseases. Fungi require food, moisture, oxygen and 
warmth for growth. 

We find mushrooms and other fungi fruiting bodies, without color, brownolive, yel¬ 
low or red in color, but with no signs of the living green of other plants. Some of them 
are parasites, as certain species of bracket fungi which are deadly enemies of living trees; 
but most of the fungi as a whole are a great boon to the world. Without them our forest 
would be choked out with dead wood. Decay is simply the process by which fungi and 
other organisms break down dead material so that most of it returns to the air in gaseous 
form, and the remainder, mostly humus, mingles with the soil. 

Underline the right words to make the following sentences true : 

1. Fungi make up (one-half, one-fourth, one-third) of our known plants. 

2 . Fungi have no (red, green, brown) coloring matter. 

3. Plants living on living matter are called (parasites, saprophytes). 

4. Plants living on dead plants are called (parasites, saprophytes). 

5. Fungi require (food, moisture, oxygen, and warmth) for growth. 

6 . Certain species of bracket fungi are (friends, enemies) of living trees. 

THE MUSHROOM 

What could be more wonderful than a plant that has no root, no stem, no leaves, and 
which springs up with such rapidity that you can fairly see it grow? Mushrooms, like 
other fungi, have no green coloring matter ( chlorophyll ) by means of which most plants 
manufacture their food, and so they live on food provided by animals and other plants. 
And how varied their shapes and colors—flat, umbrella-like, or branching like corals, and 
delicately tinted with reds and browns. Some are delicious food, while others contain a 
poison so powerful that to eat it is almost certain death. 

On most mushrooms you will find underneath the umbrella little radiating plate-like 
gills, set very closely together. It is on these gills that the tiny spores are developed, 
which drop out, and are carried far and wide by the wind. These develop new plants 
when they fall upon favorable surfaces. 

When the mushroom first pushes above the ground, it is in the “Button stage” and con¬ 
sists of a little rounded cap attached to the stem. Eater the cap spreads wide like an um¬ 
brella and the stem becomes longer, and there is a collar around the stem. As the plant 
becomes old the top flattens and is not as smooth and silky as it was, and the collar dis¬ 
appears. 

Most mushrooms delight to grow in moist shady woodlawns, or in bottoms of ravines 
where there is plenty of, shade, warmth and dampness. 

Many people make a business of raising mushrooms; especially in Europe where 
fungi are eaten much more commonly than in this country. 

17 



Fungus Growth 





1. Name the parts of these mushrooms. I-II 


2 . What type of mushroom is Number I ?__ 

3. Does the mushroom have flowers?_ 

4. Why has the mushroom no true roots ?_ 

5. What type of mushroom is Number III ?_ 

6 . Are all mushrooms poisonous? _ 

7. How do mushrooms spread? __ 

8 . How many kinds of umbrella mushrooms have you 

learned ? __ 

9. Are mushrooms harmful to touch? s 

10. Mushrooms are green as well as white, brown or tan. 
true-false. 


11 . All mushrooms are parasites, true-false. 

12. It is not safe to pick wild mushrooms to eat because —:_:__ 

13. Mushrooms spread by means of: gills, pores, seeds, spores, buttons., roots, stems. 

(Underline the correct word.) 

14. People often grow mushrooms to eat. true-false. 

Words to learn to spell: 

parasites puffball gills spawn umbrella 

spores (shelf) bracket mushroom coral pores 

18 



























OAKS 

When we begin a study of trees we will find the oaks very interesting. These trees form 
a large family. There are white oaks, black oaks, red oaks, burr oaks, willow oaks, pin 
oaks, water oaks and live oaks. All of the oaks are very hardy trees. Their wood is very 
hard and is used in making furniture and floors. The seeds of oaks are called acorns. All 
oaks, except the live oak, are deciduous trees. Each kind of oak has a different type of 
leaf. Some have wavy margins while others have lobed margins; some are long and 
broad while some are narrow. What kind of oaks grow near your school? 




2 . Draw the acorns for the pictures at the top of the page. 


19 



The; Oak Tree: 


Sing for the Oak Tree, 

The monarch of the wood; 

Sing for the Oak Tree, 

That groweth green and good; 

That groweth broad and branching 
Within the forest shade; 

That groweth now, and yet shall grow 
When we are lowly laid! 

The Oak Tree was an acorn once, 

And fell upon the earth; 

The sun and showers nourished it, 

And gave the Oak Tree birth. 

The little sprouting Oak Tree! 

Two leaves it had at first. 

Till sun and showers had nourished it, 
Then out the branches burst. 

The little sapling Oak Tree! 

Its root , was like a thread 

Till the kindly earth had nourished it, 
Then out it freely spread; 

On this side and on that side 
It grappled with the ground, 

And in the ancient, rifted rock 
Its firmest footing found. 

Four centuries grows the Oak Tree, 

Nor doth its verdure fail; 

Its heart is like the ironwood, 

Its bark like plated mail. 

Now, cut us down the Oak Tree, 

The monarch of the wood; 

And of its timbers stout and strong 
We’ll build a vessel good. 

Then sing for the Oak Tree, 

The monarch of the wood; 

Sing for the Oak Tree, 

That groweth green and good; 

That groweth broad and branching 
Within the forest shade; 

That groweth now, and yet shall grow 
When we are lowly laid!—Mary Howitt 


20 


PINES 


Pine trees are evergreen trees. Instead of having broad leaves that fall off in winter, 
these trees have long, narrow leaves shaped a little like the needles your mother knits with. 
For this reason the pine leaves are called needles. 

There are several kinds of pines. The two pines that are most used for lumber are 
the white pine and yellow pine. The wood of white pine is not so hard as that of yellow 
pine. Each type of pine has a certain number of needles which are fastened together at 
the end with a thin, gray tissue like a bundle. The white pine has five needles in a bun¬ 
dle ; while the yellow pine has three. 

Pine cones are the seed pods of the pine trees. It takes two years for the cones to ripen. 
Inside each scale of the cone can be found two seeds. Each seed has a little wing attached 
to it to help the wind to carry it along to a new place where it can grow. 

Pines have two kinds of flowers. One kind has the pistils to make the seeds and the 
other kind has the pollen in the stamens. Besides the sap, pines have a sticky juice called 
resin. Resin is not the sap of the tree but is used to close up wounds in bark. 

Make your answers to the questions below in the form of a short story. 

1. How does a pine tree look to you? 2. Why are pine leaves called needles? 

3. Why is the pine tree useful? 4. How long do pine trees live? 


Something to do: 

1. Draw a pine tree. 2. Draw a pine cone. 3. Draw a pine seed. 4. Draw a 
bundle of pine needles. 


21 








ELMS 

One of our most beautiful trees is the elm. In winter when all the leaves have fallen 
we can see that the branches form almost a fan shape as they stretch out from the trunk. 
This tree is deciduous. It has simple leaves with toothed margins and pinnate veins. 
The leaves grow alternately on the long twigs so at first glance they seem compound. The 
elm is used as a shade tree in the South. We see these tall trees with their graceful 
drooping branches growing on lawns, along drives and in parks. Its flowers bloom in 
the spring. They are a yellow-green and hang in clusters like tassels. The seeds also 
hang in clusters. Each seed has a little, stiff wing all the way around to help it to fly 
in the wind. 

Song 

For the tender beech and the sapling oak, 

That grow by the shadowy rill, 

You may cut down both at a single stroke, 

You may cut down which you will. 

But this you must know, that as long as they grow, 

Whatever change may be, 

You can never teach either oak or beech 

To be aught but a greenwood tree.—Thomas Love Peacock 

MAPLES 

Maple trees are deciduous, that is, they lose their leaves in winter. In the South, the 
red swamp maple is the most common. We also have the box elder or white maple. 

These trees have simple leaves, with lobed margins and palmate veins. The seeds are 
formed on the red maple in the spring. The flowers are red and hang down like tassels 
in clusters. The seeds grow in pairs, and each little seed has a stiff wing so that it may be 
carried by the wind to a new place far from the tree where it grew. The box elder seeds form 
in the fall. They are much like the red maple seeds except that they are not red. 

The leaves of this tree are compound. The wood of maple trees is used for lumber. 
See if you can find maple trees near your school. 

Trees 

I think that I shall never see 
A poem lovely as a tree. 

A tree whose hungry mouth is prest 
Against the earth’s sweet flowing breast; 

A tree that looks at God all day, 

And lifts her leafy arms to pray; 

A tree that may in summer wear 
A nest of robins in her hair; 

Upon whose bosom snow has lain; 

Who intimately lives with rain. 

Poems are made by fools like me, 

But only God can make a tree.—Joyce Kilmer 

22 


CARE OF TREES 



Trees sometimes need to be doctored just as people do. Branches are broken and torn 
by the wind, trunks decay and often disease destroys some of the roots of both shade trees 
and fruit trees. Fruit trees need to have their branches pruned (cut off) once a year in the 
early spring before the sap begins to run. This makes the trees look better and also makes 
them bear more fruit. Shade trees also should be trimmed or pruned, as it is called, to 
make them grow and to keep their shapes pretty. Often decayed parts of the tree trunks 
are cut out and concrete is poured into the hollowed out places. This makes the tree stronger 
and keeps the tree from falling when strong winds blow. 

Iron rods are sometimes used to brace a divided trunk to keep it from splitting. When 
branches are cut, the stub that is left is painted to prevent decay. 

1. Mark an X on the tree which has been correctly pruned. 

2. Mark the correct way to brace a forked or divided trunk. 

3. Why should fruit trees be pruned?_'_ 


4. How can a valuable tree be saved even if the trunk is decayed in some places? 


5. Why should cut ends of branches be painted?. 

6. At what time of year should trees be pruned? 

23 










LEAVES 

We know that each kind of tree has leaves different from those of other trees. Some 
ieaves are long and slender while others are broad and short. We can learn to know trees 
better by learning something about their leaves. 

Below, we have listed the types of margins of leaves. By margin we mean the outside 
edge of the leaf. Each leaf has veins running through it, just as your body has veins and 
arteries. We find several types of veining in leaves. One type is called pinnate we. ins. Here, 
one large rib called the mid rib runs through the center of the leaf with many smaller veins 
branching from it somewhat like a feather. Another common type is called palmate veins. 
Here we find several large veins spread out like the spokes of a wheel or the fingers of one’s 
hand. A less common type is parallel veins. Here the veins run the length of the leaf side by 
side almost horizontally. 

Leaves are arranged either opposite each other on the stems or alternately. 



Make a list of all the plants you know that have margins like those above. 
1. Smooth-Edged 2. Saw-Toothed 3. Toothed 

a.__ ■ _ a. _____—- a. - 

b_b.__:_ b- 

c_c._c. - 


24 













4. Wavy 


5. Lobed 


6. Dissected 


a. 

b. 


a. 

b. 


a. 

b. 


Leaves are of two types; compound or simple. By compound leaves we mean leaves 
made up of several little leaves or leaflets arranged on a long stem; such as rose leaves. 
A simple leaf has only one leaf on a stem. A good example of a simple leaf is the white 
oak. Each leaf has a brown leaf bud growing near the foot of its stem. When the leaf 
falls from the tree the buds may be seen. Compound leaves have only one large leaf bud at 
the end of the stem. There are no leaf buds at the stem of the leaflets. 

Look at the trees in your yard and see what type of leaves they have. 

Complete the list: 


SlMPIvK Leaves 

Compound Leaves 

1. Sweet gum 

1. Chinaberry 

2. Oak 

2. Sumac 

3. 

3. 

4. 

4. 

5. 

5. 

6. 

6. 

7. 

7. 




25 































SEEDS 

In the heart of a seed buried deep, so deep, 

A dear little plant lay fast asleep. 

“Awake,” said the sunshine, “and creep to the light.” 

“Awake,” said the voice of the raindrops bright. 

The little plant heard and it rose to see 

What the wonderful outside might be. 

Seeds are wonderful little things. Some large, some small, and some very tiny. Each 
little seed makes a plant or a tree. 

Seeds need our help to travel. They go on journeys just as you and I do. The maple 
seeds have wings. The dandelions have parachutes. The tumbleweed rolls along on the 
ground. All these seeds are aided by the wind. 

The animals and birds help the seeds to travel. The beggarlice and the cocklebur seeds 
have little stickers. When animals go through the fields these little seeds stick fast to their 
fur. 

Boys and girls help the seeds to travel. They eat fruit and throw the seeds away. Did 
you ever eat watermelon and throw the seeds away? What happens to the little seeds? 

Below are some different kinds of seeds. How many kinds of seeds can you add to the 
list ? - 



Select from the list below and place the number above. 


1. maple 4. beggar lice 7. cocklebur 

2. dandelion 5. poppy 8. thistle 

3. milkweed 6. clematis 9. grass burr 

List six seeds that are carried by the wind. 

1. __ 3._ 5:1 _; 

2. _ 4.__6. _ 


26 










USES OF WOOD 


Did you ever make a list of things that are made of wood? I am sure you had a 
very long list when you finished. Our trees are very important to us. They are divided 
into two groups. The evergreen and deciduous trees. Evergreen trees are those that stay 
green all the year. Deciduous trees shed their leaves in the autumn. 

Not all trees are used for the same thing. The tall pines are used for telephone posts. 
Cedar trees are used for making boxes and the pencils with which you write. The ever¬ 
green trees are used for decoration in the yard, and too, we use them for our Christmas 
trees. 


1. Name two things in your school room made of wood. 


b. ■ • - _:_ 

2. What are evergreen trees?_ 

3. Name three deciduous trees on or near your school yard. a. 

b.v_ t _c. _ 

4. What evergreen trees grow in large numbers in your city ? _ 

5. What wood is used for fruit boxes ? _ 

6. Name a wood used for chests to keep clothing in. __ 

7. Of what wood are hardwood floors made?.___ 

8. Name two trees that produce hard, close-grained wood: 

a._b. _:_ 

9. Name two trees used only for ornament in our city. 

a. ' _____ b. __ 

10. Why are evergreen trees used for telephone poles? . . ' / 


27 


















The Tree 


The Tree’s early leaf buds were bursting their brown; 

“Shall I take them away?” said the Frost, sweeping down. 
“No, leave them alone 
Till the blossoms have grown,” 

Prayed the Tree, while he trembled from rootlet to crown. 

The Tree bore his blossoms, and all the birds sung: 

“Shall I take them away?” said the Wind as he swung, 

“No, leave them alone 

Till the blossoms have grown,” 

Said the Tree, while his leaflets quivering hung. 

The Tree bore his fruit in the midsummer glow; 

Said the child, “May I gather thy berries now?” 

“Yes, all thou canst see: 

Take them; all are for thee,” 

Said the Tree, while he bent down his laden boughs low. 

—Bjornstjerne Bjornson 


28 


INSECTS 


Insects are classed into two groups according to the way in which they grow up. 

The butterfly belongs to a group that has four distinct stages; the egg, the larva ( cat¬ 
erpillar ), the pupa, and the adult (butterfly). Other insects that pass through these four 
stages are moths, bees, flies and beetles. 

The grasshopper belongs to a group that has three stages: the egg, the nymph and 
the adult. The egg hatches into a nymph, which grows and moults its skin very much like 
the caterpillar. 

The mouth parts of insects are divided into two classes: (1) those for biting; (2) 
those for sucking. 

Insects can move about in many different ways; such as flying, jumping, running, 
crawling and swimming. 

The insects breathe through openings in their abdomen. 


THE BLACK CRICKET 



A SECTION OF FILE 
E/S/LARGEO 


The crickets are among the most famous of the insect musicians. As with the song 
birds, the male only makes music. 

The patent leather finish to the cricket’s clothes is of great use in escaping his ene¬ 
mies. If you try to catch one you will see how slippery it is. 

The haunts of the cricket are usually sunny; it digs a little cave beneath a stone or 
clod in some field, where it can have the ben-fit of all the sunshine when it comes out of 
its door. 


Make some cricket cages, as follows : 

Plant in a small flower pot a root of fresh grass or clover. Place over this and press 
well into the soil a lantern or lamp chimney. Cover the top with mosquito netting 
Place the pot in its saucer, so that it may be watered by keeping the saucer filled. Col- 


29 






lect some crickets for each cage. Place the cages in a sunny window and answer the fol¬ 
lowing questions by watching the crickets in the cages: 

1. Is the covering of the cricket shining like black patent leather, or is it dull?- 

_ Of what use do you think this kind of cover¬ 
ing is to the cricket ? _____ • 

2. Where did you find the crickets?___ 

When you tried to catch them, how did they act?__ 

3. Look carefully at the cricket’s legs. Which is the largest of the three pairs?_ 

Has the cricket a pad between its claws like the grass-hopper?_ 

4. Study the cricket’s head. Can you see the eyes? _ 

Describe the antennae—their color, length, and the way they are used. _ 


5. Study the wings. Are the wings of the mother cricket the same size and shape as 

those of her mate?_How do they differ?__ 

How does the male make the noise?_ 

Can you see the wings vibrate ?_ 

6. Look in the tibia, or elbow, of the front leg for a little white spot. What do you sup¬ 
pose this is? _ 

7. Why does the mother cricket need such a long ovipositor?__ 

Where does she put her eggs in the fall to keep them safe until spring?_ 

8. Study the grasshopper on opposite page. Make a collection of insects you have studied. 
Put them on pins in cigar boxes. 


30 























THE GRASSHOPPER 



BODY OF GRASSHOPPER 


Grasshoppers are funny little fellows and we like them—when there are not too many 
of them. There are a great many species of them, and we have placed them in two di¬ 
visions : the shorthorned grasshopper and the longhorned grasshopper. 


The; Shorthorned Grasshoppers 

Grasshoppers have no horns, of course, but have short antennae that stick out like little 
horns. Their eyes are compound. See it move its mouth parts. It bites out of the leaves 
and chews them up very fast. It has six legs and all are used in walking. Its hind legs 
are long and large, and are used in jumping. The grasshopper can turn its legs in almost 
any direction because of these small upper parts. 

The little pad on its foot between the claw is fringed with hair; out of the tip of each 
hair comes a little drop of sticky liquid. This fastens the foot to any smooth surface. The 
foot pad is called a pulvillus. Mr. Grasshopper sings his songs with his hind legs; he rubs 
the inside of his femurs against the outside of his wings. 

When full grown the females lay their eggs in a hole in the ground. The end of the 
abdomen is very strong and sharp, and the grasshopper can make a hole with it quite easily. 
When the hole is made and the eggs are laid in it, the grasshopper covers the opening to 
the hole with a sticky substance to keep out the wet. The eggs usually lie in the ground 
all winter. Early in the summer the eggs hatch. 


1. Name the two divisions of grasshoppers. 


2. Do they have simple or compound eyes? 

3. How many legs do they have? _ ...._ 


31 


















4. How is the music made? 


5. Does the female sing?_ ■' ' ' - _ ~ • ? • V' - / _ :W . - ' ' 

6. When are the eggs laid ?_ 

7. Where are they laid? _ ' _ 

8. When do they hatch ? ____ 

The Longhorned Grasshopper 

The antennae of the longhorned grasshopper are like threads, and they are longer than 
the body. Ears are on front legs of the insect. In many species of the longhorned grass¬ 
hopper, the male has a curious musical instrument on his wing covers, close to where they 
grow from the body. The sword-like organ at the end of its body , is its ovipositor. Ovi¬ 
positor means “egg placer.” With this long sharp ovipositor, the grasshopper can roughen 
the bark of twigs or make holes in the stems o f plants or in the earth. Only the female grass¬ 
hoppers have the sword-shaped ovipositor. 

On page 31 there is a picture of. a grasshopper. The legs and wings are not drawn 
and the abdomen is drawn by itself so you may see it easily. There are ten rings. The rings 
are covered with a hard, horny substance called chitin. Insects have no bones. They are 
kept stiff by the chitin. The rings are made in pieces so the insect can move. The rings are 
called segments. The segments are fastened together by skin. This picture showsAhe head 
and thorax of the grasshopper. 

The grasshopper has muscles. The muscles are very, very, strong. Almost any insect 
can pull a load that is five times the weight of its body. 

1. Are the grasshopper’s antennae longer than its body?_ 

2. Where are the ears?.___ ' ' 

3. Where is the musical instrument? ____ ' - _ ' 

4. What does ovipositor mean ?___ - ___ ■ 

5. Does the male have an ovipositor?_ , _ a __ ' __ 

6. How many rings are in the abdomen ?____ ' 

7. What is chitin?____ : 

8. Where is chitin used on the grasshopper?_ ' _ '' __ -~ __ 

9. Do insects have bones?______ 

10. Are the muscles strong or weak?____ ■ _ 


32 

















THE DRAGON FEY OR MOSQUITO HAWK 



The dragon fly is sometimes called a mosquito hawk because it catches mosquitoes. It 
also catches gnats, flies, and other insects while flying. It is our friend and we should 
never kill a dragon fly. 

It has compound eyes. Forty thousand eyes are on the little dragon fly’s head. Eyes 
like these are made of many small eyes called facets. 

The dragon fly has a big mouth. Its jaws do not show unless it opens its lower lip, 
which fits over its mouth like a mask. It has two short antennae. Its eyes, its mouth and 
its antennae belong to its head. The dragon fly can fly as well as it can see. Of course, 
this is necessary to catch the insects. When it rests, it folds its wings together. Sometimes 
birds eat the smaller dragon flies. No bird could swallow a large one because they are too 
stiff. But a frog can, and it watches for the dragon flies as they come to the water to 
lay their eggs. Every dragon fly has six legs. They are short and small, because they do 
not need large strong legs. They hardly ever walk. 

The female dragon fly drops her eggs in the water or lays them on twigs in the water 
where they hatch into larvae. The dragon flies have to be very careful when they go close 
to the water to lay their eggs. You know why, because the frogs are on the watch to catch 
them. The mother dragon fly knows the larvae have to live in the water; so she is careful 
to put the eggs there. 

When the larvae first hatch, it is very small, and its legs are rather long and spidery, 
but it eats and eats and eats. It sheds or changes several times, and at last little short wings 
appear. They have a sort of syringe in the end of the body and there are breathing pores 
or gills in the syringe. 

The larvae stay down in the pond eating, growing and moulting for nine or ten 
months or even longer; then something wonderful happens—it climbs up a weed or a stick 
until it is clear out of the water. Then its skin splits down the back for the last time, and 
out comes the dragon fly. 


33 









Some of the following statements are true and some are untrue. Write yes in the 
blank following the true statement, and no following the untrue. 

1. The dragon fly is called a mosquito hawk. _———— 

2. The dragon fly’s eyes are simple.__________L--—--— - - ■ ■■ 

3. The dragon fly is our enemy. ■ . .. __—-- 

4. The dragon fly does not need long antennae. ______ £ —. ~ -G- 

5. When the dragon fly rests, its wings are folded.,___'____— : ... - 

6. The frog catches the dragon flies when they come to lay their eggs on the water. 

7. The dragon fly has six legs. ___ 

8. The larvae live in the pond nine or ten months. __„___ 

Answer these questions concerning insects : 

1. All insects have 3, 5, 6, 8, 7 legs. ( Draw a line through all but the correct number .) 

2. How many life stages has the mosquito hawk?___*-- 

3. Do bees and grasshoppers pass through the same life stages ? __ 

4. Grasshoppers lay their eggs in the water, dead leaves, ground, dirty places. ( Draw 
a line through all but the correct word.) 

5. Where does the baby locust or cicada live until fully grown ?__ 


6. How many wings has the mosquito hawk ? ___ __ _ ___ 

7. What is the difference between a dragon fly and a mosquito hawk ?_ 

8. Why should we kill grasshoppers but protect mosquito hawks?_ 

9. Which of these insects has a sucking mouth : cricket, grasshopper, butterfly, mosquito 

hawk, locust ? ,__ _:_i-:-1 

10. Which of these insects lays its eggs in water: ant, bee, locust, wasp, mosquito 

hawk ? _ i__ ___ 


34 























WASPS 


1. Of what is the hornet’s nest made? _ 

2. What does the dirt dauber feed its young? _ 

3. Where do polistes (wasps) get the material for their nests? 

4. How does the dirt dauber differ from the polistes ? _____ 

5. What type of mouth have wasps? _ 

6. Why is the dirt dauber not a true social insect? _ 

7. How can wasps smell and hear?_ 

8. Do wasps die when they sting?_ 

9. How are paper wasps’ cells like those of the bees? _ 

10. What happens to wasps in winter? ____________ 

11. Where does the dirt dauber get her material for her nest? _ 

12. What idea did wasps give man? _ 


35 














GALLS 


Although Alladin is out of fashion, we still have houses of magic that are even more 
wonderful than that made by his wonderful lamp. Those houses are built through the part¬ 
nership between insects and plant tissues, and no one understands just how they are made. 
These houses are called galls. They grow because of a soreness to the plant caused by the 
insect. 

There are many forms of these gall-dwellings, and they may grow upon the root, 
branch, leaf, blossoms or fruit. The strange thing about them is that each kind of insect 
builds its house upon a certain part of a certain species of tree or plant; and the house is 
always of 3 certain form on the outside and inside. 

Many galls are compound; that is, they are made up of a community of larvae, each 
in its own cell. The mossy rose-gall is an example of this. See if you can find one and 
bring it to class. 

T. Bring as many different kinds of galls to class as you can find. Place each one in a 
jar covered with cheese cloth and place where they will be under observation for per¬ 
haps several months. Note what sort of winged insects comes from each. 

2. Make a list of all the words in the paragraph that tell where gall dwellers may be 

found. • 

a. ___. _ d. _ 

b. _. e. _ 

c. _ - f. __ . "• ■ -- 

3. Write in your own words what you think a gall is: 


36 















The spring oak-gall 

Is 


The acorn 
plum-gall 



The pointed bullet-gall 
on oak twigs 




A green little world 
With me at its heart; 

A house grown by magic. 

Of a green stem, a part. 

My walls give me food 

And protect me from foes, 

I eat at my leisure, 

In safety repose. 

My house hath no window 
’Tis dark as the night, 

But I make me a door 
And button it tight. 

And when my wings grow, 

I throw wide my door; 

And to my green castle 

I return never more.—Comstock. 

Draw another gall beside these shown in 
the picture : 


t ) 

Stem of goldenrod, showing the 
round gall above made by larva of a 
fly; and the spindle shaped gall below, 
made by the caterpillar of a moth. 


37 



BIRDS 

What boy or girl dosen’t like to study birds with their pretty bright colors, beautiful 
song or call, and their nest-making? 

In the spring after the nest is made the mother bird lays from four to seven eggs. 
The eggs of different birds vary in color; some are blue, some white and some brown. 
The mother bird sits upon her nest from ten to fourteen days. When the eggs hatch the 
father and mother bird must feed their little ones because they are very hungry. Baby 
birds eat many, many insects a day. Some say that the parents feed their young as often 
as two hundred times a day. Because young birds eat so much food, they are soon full- 
grown. Then the parents teach them to fly. After they have learned to fly they are ready 
to make a nest of their own. 

Did you ever hear a bird sing? Birds begin to sing early in the morning, and are in 
full chorus by sunrise. Then they sing again late in the afternoon. The father bird is the 
only one that sings. 

Birds travel like people, only we say birds migrate. Migration means going from 
one place to another. 

Birds travel in the winter and summer. There are some that go to South America, some 
go to the northern and southern part of the continent, some travel only a few miles, and 
others from state to state. 

The birds that travel so far never lose their way. They follow the coast line and 
mountain regions, though these are not the only guides. The bird, itself, has a sense of di¬ 
rection which leads it even when it is going on a journey for the first time in a new country. 

Birds are divided into four groups according to the length of time they stay in one 
place. Permanent residents remain one place all the year; summer residents stay only the 
summer; winter residents stay during the winter; and transient visitants stay only a short 
time during the spring and fall. 


Underline the correct an\swer. 

1. Migration means (1) sleeping all winter, (2) traveling, (3) something to eat. 

2. Do all birds migrate the same distance? Yes—No. 

3. Do birds migrate without stopping or do they stop for food and rest? Yes—No. 

4. Birds are divided into groups according to (1) the way they sing, (2) their color, 
(3) the length of time they stay in one place. 

5. Permanent residents live in one place (1) during summer, (2) all the time, (3) dur¬ 
ing winter, (4) for six months. 

6. The English sparrow is a (1) summer resident, (2) winter resident, (3) permanent 
resident, (4) transient visitor. 

7. To which of these classes does the robin belong in your city?_ 

8. Give the name of your state bird._I_ - 


38 




9. Birds migrate in _ and _ 

10. Give two reasons why we should protect the birds. _ 

11. To which group does the cardinal belong? _ 

12. What do the birds use as guides when going to Mexico and South America? 

13. Does the mocking bird migrate? _ 

14. To which country do the humming birds go? _ 

15. Do sea gulls go south for the winter? ___ 

THE ROBIN 



Color the breast a red brown; color the head, wings and back dark brown. 

The robin is about eight inches long and eats insects almost entirely. The male 
sings a very pretty song. The nest is made of coarse straw or grass, lined with a cup¬ 
shaped form of mud with a soft inner lining of fine grass. They raise several broods 
each season. Robins eat some fruit, but do gpod by eating many insect pests. 

Underline the sentences that are true. 

1. The robin is a cheerful bird. 

2. The song of the robin is light and soft. 

3. The robin builds his nest of mud, sticks and grasses. 

4. The robin is one of the first birds of spring. 

39 












THE MEADOW LARK 



The meadow lark, as its name tells us, is a bird of the meadows. 

The colors of the meadow lark are shades of brown and yellow, well set off by the 
black locket on its breast. Its wings are light brown, each feather being streaked with 
black and brown; the line above the eye is yellow, bordered with black above and below; 
a buff line extends from the beak backward over the crown. The wings are light brown 
and have mere suggestions of white bars; portions of the outer feathers on each side of 
the throat are greenish, the middle part and breast are lemon yellow with the large black 
crescent just below the throat. The beak is long and black. The meadow lark is a little 
larger than the robin. 

Color this bird as he has been described. 

The meadow lark has a liking for meadows which border streams. It sings when on 
the ground, on the bush or fence, and while on the wing; and it sings during the entire 
period of its northern stay, from April to November, except while it is moulting in late 
summer. 

Its nest is built in a shallow hole in the ground near a tuft of grass, and it is made 
of coarse grass and sticks and lined with finer grass. There is a dome or roof of grass 
blades woven above the nest, and a long covered passage-way leading to the nest is made 
in the same way. This is for protection from the keen eyes of the hawks and crows. 
The eggs are laid about the last of May, are usually from five to seven in number, and 
are white speckled with brown and purple. 


40 






The food of the meadow lark during the whole year is made up almost entirely of in¬ 
sects which eat the grass of our meadows. It eats great numbers of grasshoppers, cut worms, 
and some weed seeds. The killing of the meadow lark in New York state is a punishable 
offense, as it should be in every state of the Union. It has been estimated that the meadow 
larks save for every township where hay is produced, twenty-five dollars each year on this 
crop klone. 

1. How does this bird get its name ? _______——- 

2. What good does this bird do the farmer? _1— : -—^--*— 

3. Why does it cover its nest ? ______■— 

4. What is its food?__ _ _ _,-—------—-— 





41 









THE HUMMING BIRD 



the later methods of discovering what birds eat by examining their stomachs show that the 
humming bird is an insect eater. 

It is interesting to note that the young humming birds have a beak much shorter than 
when grown. Its beak is exactly fitted to probe those flowers where the humming bird finds 
its food. The tongue has the outer edges curved over, making a tube on each side. These 
tubes have tiny brushes at the tips and thus are fitted both for sucking nectar and for sweep¬ 
ing up the insects. 

The natural home of the humming bird seems to have been in the eastern part of 
the Rocky Mountains. He comes to us after a very long journey each year. One species on 
the Pacific Coast is known to travel three thousand miles to the north for the summer, and 
back again in winter. 

Humming birds are not supposed to sing, but to use their voices for squeaking when 
angry or frightened. The nest of the humming bird is a most exquisite structure; it is 
about three-fourths of an inch in diameter on the inside, and about one-half an inch deep. 
It is, in shape, a symmetrical cup, and the outside is covered with lichens to make it exactly 
resemble the branch on which it rests. The nest is lined with the down of plant seeds 
and plant fibers. The lichens are afterwards fastened together with the silk web of spiders 
or caterpillars. The nest is usually saddled on a branch of a tree from ten to fifty feet 
above the ground. The eggs are two in number, white, and they look like tiny beans. 
The young humming birds are black, and look, at first glance, more like insects than like 
birds. 

Color the picture with crayolas. The bird's body is a greenish brown; his beak is black; 
his throat is red. 


42 





THE RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD 



Color the wings red and yellow. Color (1) yellow. (2) red. Color the rest of the 
bird black. 

The red-winged blackbird dwells in marshy places. Its kong-queruee is as sure sign 
of the presence of water as is the croaking of frogs in spring. The male, in spring and 
early summer is unmistakable with its brilliant red shoulders. In winter its feathers are 
tipped with brown, and the colors are less marked in the young. The feathers of the 
streaked female are grayish brown with bits of red on the shoulders. 

The most beautiful of birds in North America is the so-called “red-wing.” It is 
sometimes called the officer bird because of the brilliant red shoulders which correspond to 
epaulets. 

The nest is built in alders or button bushes, and sometimes on the ground. Although 
the birds arrive at their nesting marshes in March, their pale blue eggs, spotted, blotched 
and scrawled, are not laid until May. Eastern North- America from Florida to Canada 
is the home of red wings during the nesting season. In winter they are found southward 
from Maryland. 

The blackbird does not have many friends among the farmers, because there is a feel¬ 
ing among them that he does a great deal of damage to the crops. At times this is true, 
for they eat the heads of growing grains. Careful study shows that the good this bird 
does far outweighs the injury. Seeds of ragweed, barnyard grass, and smart weed, as well 
as numerous insects, are food favorites of the red wing. 

1. Are blackbirds harmful? _I_ !. _ . _ - - _ if 

2. What color are the eggs ? __ 

3. Where does the blackbird like to live? __ 

4. What is its food? ____ 


43 







THE MOCKING BIRD 


The mocking birds go as far north as southern New England, but they are found al 
their best in the southern states and in California. On the Gulf Coast the mockers begin 
singing in February; in warmer climates they sing almost the year through. During the 
nesting season the father mocker is so busy with his cares and duties during the day that 
he does not have time to sing, and so devotes the nights to serenading; he may sing al¬ 
most all night long if there is moonlight, but even on dark nights he gives now and then 
a happy sleepy song. One authority noted a mocker which imitated the songs of twenty 
species of birds during ten minutes of singing. 

Although the mocking birds live in wild places, they like best to live near men, tak¬ 
ing up their homesites in gardens and cultivated grounds. For nesting sites they choose 
thickets or the lower branches of trees, being especially fond of orange trees. The nest 
is usually ; from four to twenty feet from the ground. The foundation of the nest is made 
of sticks, grasses and weed stalks interlaced and criss-crossed; on these is built the nest of 
softer materials, such as rootlets, horsehair, cotton or in fact anything suitable which is at 
hand. The nest is often in plain sight, since the mocker trusts to his strength as a fighter 
to protect it. He will attack cats and chase them; he will kill snakes; he will also drive 
away birds much larger than himself. The mocker, in making his attack, hovers above his 
enemy &nd strikes it at the back of the head or neck. 

The female lays from four to six pale greenish or bluish eggs, blotched with brown, 
which hatch in about two weeks; then comes a period of hard work for the parents, catch¬ 
ing insects to feed the young. The mockers often raise three broods a season. 

The mocking birds have the same color in both sexes. The head is black; the back is 
ashy gray; and the tail and wings are so dark brown that they look black. The tail is very 
long and the outer tail feathers are entirely white, while the two next inner ones are white 
for more than half their length. The wings have a strikingly broad, white bar, which is very 
noticeable when the bird is flying. The underparts and breast are grayish white, and the beak 
and legs are blackish. The food of the mocking bird is about half insects and half fruit. 

The mocker is full of tricks and is distinctly a bird of humor. He will frighten oth¬ 
er birds by screaming like a hawk and then s^em to laugh over the joke. 

Sidney Lanier describes him well: 

“Whate’er birds did or dreamed, this bird could say, 

Then down he shot, bounced airily along 

The sward, twitched in a grasshopper, made song 

Midflight, perched, prinked and to his art again.” 


44 



Color the bird gray. Leave 1 , 2 and 3 white. 

Something to do: Draw a mocking bird’s nest or try to find one. 

Answer these questions: 

1. At what months of the year and for how many months does the mocking bird sing 

in this locality ? ___1_1_J__ 

2. Does he sing only on moonlight nights?_Does he sing all night?_ 

3. Do these birds like best to live in wild places, or about houses and gardens ? _ 

4. Where do they choose sites for their nests?_ 

Do they make an effort to hide the nest? _If not, why?_ 

5. Of what material is the nest made?_ 


How is it lined?,__ 

How far from the ground is it placed? 


45 















6. What are the colors of the eggs?------ 

How many are usually laid?________ 

How long before they hatch ?------ 

7. How many broods does a pair of mockers raise during one season?-* 

8. Describe the colors of the mocking bird as follows: Beak, head, back, tail, wings, throat, 
breast, underparts and feet. 



46 






























































THE RED-HEADED WOODPECKER 

The red-headed woodpecker likes to eat acorns, beechnuts and grasshoppers. It hide^ 
its food away just as the squirrel does. It will put its food in holes of trees, in old barns 
between shingles of the roof, in the ends of railroad ties and in all sorts of places. He eats 

this food in winter when there is none to 
be found. 

Red-headed woodpeckers eat beetles 
which are useful to man; they also eat 
canker-worms which do much damage to 
orchards. These woodpeckers sometimes 
eat the eggs and young of other birds. 

All woodpeckers seem to like music. 
Tin roofs, gutters, dry dead limbs of trees 
and telephone poles are some of the 
things they like to drum upon. They do 
not sing; likely because of this drum¬ 
ming they do. 

Color the head red; color the wings 
and tail black; leave Fig. 1 white; Fig. 2 
white; color the tree trunk brown. 



1. Where does the red-headed woodpecker build its nest?. 


2. What does the woodpecker eat? 


3. Does the woodpecker sing like other birds?. 

4. Why is he called a red-headed woodpecker? 


47 











THE CARDINAL 



The cardinal gets its name from its bright coat and peaked red cap of feathers. It 

is also called the redbird, Georgia corncracker and cardinal grosbeak. It eats weed seeds 

of all kinds almost entirely except when nesting. The bady birds are fed worms and in¬ 
sects. 

The cardinal does not migrate during the winter but lives among evergreen trees so it 

may find berries and seeds to eat. It likes cedar and holly berries; also hackberries. Two 

families of little birds are raised during one nesting season and both broods stay with the 
parents during the winter. 

Above is a picture of the male bird. The female is an olive gray with only a little red 
on her beak, wings and tail. The nest is hidden in vines or bushes and is well made of 
grass, horsehair or strings. The male sings a pretty song in the spring. 


1. Do the male and female cardinals look alike? 

2. How do these birds help the farmers?_ 

3. Where does the redbird spent the winter?_ 

4. What are the little ones fed?_ . 


48 







BIRD HOUSES 


The Indians were one of the first people to build bird houses. They built these houses 
for the martins. These houses were made of gourds. They hung the gourds on a long 
line near their fields. They knew that the martins helped them by eating many insects. 
Now our martin bird houses are made like our own. These like to live together. 

When we make bird houses, we are helping the birds. Many years ago the birds did 
not need our help but now so many of our trees have been cut down that the little birds 
have no place to build a nest. 

Many birds will not accept our built houses. Only those that build their nest in cav¬ 
ities such as, the wren, bluebird, and martin. 

If you are going to build a bird house, you must decide first on the kind of bird that 
you wish it built for. After you have decided on the bird you must then plan on the kind 
of house that you want to make, the materials to be used, the size and shape of the house. 
Here are some plans to make bird houses. Try and make one for your yard or school. 



49 





























Something to do: Draw your house in this space. You may make a square for your 
house. Around your house draw the trees that grow in your yard. Name each tree. If you 
do not have any trees around your house, use your neighbor’s yard. 


In the space below, draw a bird house, a bird bath and a bird food tray. 


BIRD STORIES 


Name the birds that come in the winter. Choose the bird you like best and tell why 
you like it best. 


Draw a picture of your bird. 












SOIL 


There are five kinds of soil: sand, clay, humus, loam and gravel. Loam is the best 
soil for growing plants. We need sand and humus to make loam. Humus is made of dead 
plants and animals. Gravel is very coarse rocks. In sand there are tiny bits of mica. 
The richest soil is humus. Water-formed rocks have much lime in them. Sand lets the 
water drain quickly, and clay holds water longer than other soils. 



An Experiment With Soils 

Get an equal amount of clay, gravel, loam 
and humus. Put each into a small glass globe 
or lamp chimney. Tie a piece of cloth over 
one end of each globe and place it over a 
straight sided glass. Pour into each globe an 
equal amount of water. Then watch closely 
to see how much water each kind of soil will 
hold. This shows us the water-holding pow¬ 
er of the soil in each globe. 

Words to learn to spell: 

loam sand mica 

clay humus lime 

gravel soil 


Fill in the blanks with the correct words : 

1. The soil that is best' for growing plants is______ 

2. _ ; ___holds water longer than 

other soils. 

3. We need sand and humus to make ____ 

4. We get _where there are lots of dead leaves and plants on 

the ground. 


5. Sand has bits of_in it. 

6. _is very coarse rocks. 

7. The richest soil is __ 


_ is very poor in plant food. 


9. 

10 . 


Water-formed rocks have much__ 

_lets the water drain quickly. 

52 


in them. 






















MINERALS 

Minerals are the prettiest things we have. There are many kinds of minerals; such 
as, quartz, feldspar, mica, calcite, ores, gems, and precious stones. 

There are ten grades of minerals. They are graded according to their hardness. The 
diamond is the hardest of all the minerals. 

Most of these minerals are in the form of beautiful crystals. Quartz is the most com¬ 
mon of all the minerals. Quartz occur in many forms. When in the form of crystals, 
like glass, it is called rock crystals. Rock crystals are used in jewelry. Another form is 
in crystals, glassy but transparent. If white it is called milky quartz. If pink, called 
rose quartz. The other is of different colors called amethyst. The petrified trees found in 
the western United States are forms of quartz. Flint is another form of quartz. 

Feldspar is seen mostly as the pinkish color in granite. Feldspar is ground to pow- 
der as fine as flour and made into pottery. 

Mica is another common mineral often called isinglass. It is transparent and not af¬ 
fected by the heat. You can find mica in your electric irons and electric toasters. 

Would you like to make some crystal forms? Ask your teacher if you may bring a 
saucer, cup, teaspoon and some salt to school. Fill the cup about a third full of water. 
Then add salt and stir until the salt is all dissolved. Then pour off the clear liquid into 
the saucer. In the liquid put a piece of colored paper and string. Put the saucer on the 
window sill and leave it there until the water evaporates. What do you have? What is 
their shape? Took at them under a lens or magnifying glass. 

ROCKS 

Rocks are very useful to man. At one time all soil was made of rocks. Soil is neces¬ 
sary for plant life. Rocks are used for plant life. Rocks are used for building stones, for 
putting ornamentation on fine buildings, such as marble for floors or pillars. 

There are three groups of rocks. One group is called the sedimentary rocks. These 
are the limestone and sandstone. Limestone and sandstone are water-formed rocks. 
Among the water-formed rocks are found many fossils of both plants and animals that 
lived many years ago: Fossils are things such as animals, plants and fernlike plants that 
have become petrified in rocks. 

A second group of rocks is called igneous rocks. Igneous means fire. The igneous 
rocks were first in the form of hot liquid. As they cooled off they formed into a solid 
rock. Granite is an igneous rock. Many beautiful monuments are made of granite. 

The third group of rocks is called metamorphic. Metamorphic means changing from 
one form to another. Metamorphic rocks are made from rocks of the other two classes. 
For example limestone may be changed into marble, shale changed to slate. These changes 
are brought about by heat, water, and pressure. Marble is a metamorphic rock. It is used 
for building stones, monuments, and ornamentation. 

Review oe Rocks and Minerals 

1. How many grades of minerals have we?____ 

2. Minerals are graded according to color, size, brightness, hardness. ( Underline the 
correct word.) 


3. Name the hardest mineral 


53 




4. 


Name two of the second grade minerals. 

1._ ' ___ 

2 _:_-_ 

5. Name four valuable ores. 

1_____'-— 

2 _*--- 

3___— 

4.----— 

6. Are silver and rubies both minerals ?__—J—-- 

7. Name four gems or precious stones. 

1. _____ 

2 . ___ 

3. __'___ 

4. ___.____ 

8. How did the Indians use flint ? -—— 

■ 

9. Give one use for silver.__ 

10. What use had the Pilgrims for flint?.- 

11. Name three uses for rocks. 

1 . ________ 

2. _i_i- 

3. ___—-: 

12. Rocks may be grouped into how many classes or kinds? 

13. Name two water-formed rocks. __ 

i._;___ 

2 ________ 


54 




































14. To which group does granite belong?_ 

15. What does the word metamorphic mean?_ 

16. What stone does limestone make?_ 

17. Igneous is a Tatin word meaning_ 

18. Do stratified rocks belong to the igneous group? 

19. Give two uses for marble. 

1 ._ 

2 ._ 

20. The hardest rock of all is_ 











STARS 

We often look at the stars but we very seldom think of them as being as large or 
even larger than our sun and moon. They are really bright, hot suns but are so very far 
away from us that they look like little points of light. We can only see about 2,000 stars 
with our unaided eye but there are many millions of them in the sky. People who study 
stars tell us that because they have been able to see them with a big strong telescope, or 
have taken a picture which shows more stars than we can see with just our eyes. These 
same stars have been in their places for hundreds of years. Little boys and girls, who 
first lived in America, saw the same stars you can see tonight. 

A group of stars is called a constellation. We have five of these groups of stars or 
constellations that we can see any clear night of the year. They swing in a circle around 
the north or pole star so we call them circumpolar constellations. The following stories 
tell how these constellations were named. Most of the’large groups of stars were named 
by the Greeks or Romans. We call such stories as these myths. 

Big and Little Bears or Dippers 

There once lived in Greece a very beautiful woman named Callisto. She was much 
admired by Jupiter, the most powerful of all the gods. Juno was jealous of Callisto and 
changed her into a bear. Poor Callisto was so afraid in the big forest. Each time she 
heard hunters with their dogs she ran away to hide until they were gone. 

Callisto had a son who was a great hunter. He and the other boys often took their 
bows and arrows and hunted in the forest for deer and bear. 

One day these boys, while on a hunt, found a large bear and chased it. This was 
really Callisto. When she saw her son she ran toward him. He thought the bear was 
about to kill him for of course he did not know it was his mother. He put an arrow in 
place to shoot her but Jupiter, who was watching, changed them into the constellations, 
Big Bear and Little Bear and placed them in the heavens. He placed them in such a way 
that they never sink beneath the ocean. 

Cassiopeia, Cepheus, and the Dragon 

Long years ago there lived, in a kingdom by the sea, a king whose name was Cepheus. 
His queen was named Cassiopeia. She was very vain and thought she was more beautiful 
than anyone else. She even boasted that she was more beautiful than the nymphs. 

The sea nymphs were very angry and sent a big dragon to eat the people along the 
shore. King Cepheus asked the nymphs to take away the dragon but they would not unless 
he chained his daughter Andromeda to a rock out in the water so she could be eaten. 
This was done. 

In another kingdom, far away there lived a young man whose name was Perseus. 
He was trying to rescue his mother from a wicked king. This king told Perseus that he 
must cut off the head of Medusa. Medusa was a terrible woman who had snakes instead 
hair on her head and she turned to stone anyone who looked at her. Mercury, the mes¬ 
senger of the gods, helped Perseus to cut olf her head by lending him some sandals with 
wings, a cloak that made him invisible, and a sharp sword. While on his way home after 
getting the head of Medusa, Perseus saw Andromeda chained to the rock. He killed the 
dragon and rescued her. Cepheus gave her to Perseus to be his wife. When all these peo¬ 
ple died, the gods changed them to stars. In order to punish Cassiopeia, she was placed 
so that half of the time, she hangs head downward. 

56 


STARS AND PLANETS 


* 


\ 


\ 


ft 

\ 


ft. 


ft 


ft 


» 

t 

' \ 

* \ 

\ ft 


ft 



' 'f 


ft 


ft 




.-ft'' 


ft 


ft~- 


** 

/ 

I 




ft 


£ 

l 

I 

I 

ft 


We call the place on which we live the earth, or world. There are seven other worlds 
besides ours that move in a circle around the sun. They are called' planets. 

Their names are: Venus, Mercury, Uranus, Mars, Neptune, Saturn and Jupiter. Mer¬ 
cury is closer to the sun than any of the other planets, then comes Venus, then our earth, 
then Mars. We do not know whether anyone lives on these other worlds but it is thought 
that there may be people living on Mars. Jupiter is the largest planet. Its diameter is 
eleven times bigger than that of the earth. 

1. Name each of the constellations in the drawing above. _ 

2. What race of people gave us many of the names and myths of the stars ? _ 

3. Gi've the name of the constellation that has in it the North Star.__ 


4. What is a constellation?. 


5. How many planets are there?_ 

6. What are the circumpolar constellations ?_ 

7. What is meant by stars of the first magnitude?_ 

8. Can we see the constellation Orion in the summer ? 


57 










9. Which of these planets is the largest? Mars, Venus, Jupiter, Earth. (Underline the 
correct planet.) 

10. Is the Earth the only planet wtih a moon?_____ 

11. What heavenly body has its own light and heat ?__ ■ _ 

12. Give three differences between the moon and the sun. ___ 

1 . ___ 1 _ 

2 :\ _ • _ 

3.. _;___i 

13. Which planet is nearest the sun? Mercury, Mars, Earth, Venus, Saturn. ( Underline 
the correct planet.) 

14. Upon what do we depend for our heat and light? _ 





58 










WIND 


Wind can be very harmful and very useful. When it is useful it helps to scatter the 
seed, helps the trees to get rid of their leaves, helps a boy to fly his kite, drives the dark 
clouds away and turns the windmills to pump water. 

The wind can be very harmful. When winds are hot and dry they cause crops to 
die, they destroy homes and trees, cause great ships to sink at sea. But the wind does more 
good than harm. Air is always moving.. Wind is air in motion. 

The Wind 

I saw you toss the kites on high 
And blow the birds about the sky; 

And all around I heard you pass, 

Like ladies’ skirts across the grass— 

O wind, a-blowing all day long, 

O wind, that sings so loud a song! 

I saw the different things you did, 

But always you yourself you hid. 

I felt you push, I heard you call, 

I could not see yourself at all— 

O wind, a-blowing all day long, 

O wind, that sings so loud a song! 

O you that are so strong and cold, 

O blower, are you young or old? 

Are you a beast of field and tree, 

O wind, a-blowing all day long, 

Or just a stronger child than one? 

O wind, that sings so loud a song!—Robert Louis Stevenson 


The Wind 

Has anybody seen the wind? 

It makes the wash wave on the line; 

Bends trees and scatters leaves about, 

And whistles through the dry brown vines. 
It roars, it whistles, then it moans, 

It makes the old gate hinges screech; 

Then with a shriek and sudden blast, 

Takes small boys’ kites far out of reach. 
It’s here, and there, and everywhere, 

It sweeps from lowland meadows green, 
Up to the rugged mountain top— 

And yet this wind is never seen. 

—Dorothy M. Herr, in Story Time 


59 


In each square draw a picture representing the east, west, south and north winds. 



60 






1 . 


Name five ways in which the wind is useful to us: 

1 _____ 

2 .___ 

3 . ______ 

4. __ 

5 . __ 

2. Write opposite the winds the season of the year in which they come. 
Winds Seasons 

1. East ——--- 

2. North- 2 -- 

3. South --—- 

4. West 4 -—-- 


61 




















AIRPLANES 

There are many uses for the airplane; such as, to carry mail, to deliver express pack¬ 
ages, to transport passengers, to spray infected fields, to patrol forests, to watch for forest 
fires, to take photographs, and to make maps of land. Both airships and airplanes have 
crossed the Atlantic Ocean. 

Man first got the idea of flying from birds. The Wright brothers made the first suc¬ 
cessful airplane. When on the ground the airplane is resting on wheels. 

1. Give three uses for airplanes besides their use in war. 

a. __ 

b. _ 

c. ,_,_ 

2. Are airships and airplanes the same things?_ 

3. Who made the first successful airplane?_.___i__ r; 

4. How did men first get the idea of flying ? _ 

5. Of what use is the propeller? J,_ 

6. Tell the difference between a biplane and monoplane._ 

7. On what does the airplane rest when on the ground?_ 

8. Of what value is the airplane as a mail carrier?_ 

9. Draw an airplane. 10. Draw an airship. 


62 












SPRING FLOWERS 

The pretty wild flowers of spring are found during the months of March, April and 
May. Did you ever play games with the wild flowers ? What fun it is to make clover 
chains! Did you ever ask the dandelion what time it is, or, if your mother wants you? 

The buttercups tell us if we like butter by placing the buttercup under our chin and if 
it reflects yellow we like butter. 



By pulling petals from daisies and 
saying, “love me, love me not,” we can 
tell whether our sweetheart loves us or 
not. 

Many of our wild flowers have been 
destroyed because someone was care¬ 
less and pulled them up by the roots. 
We must learn to protect them if we 
are going to have any left. 

BLUE FLAG OR IRIS 

The blue flag, or iris, lives in wet, 
y-, rich marshes and meadows. It blooms 

from May to July. It must have help 
from the bees to carry its pollen from 
one flower to another. 

The iris is a plant that stores up its 
own food in its roots. These roots 
are called rootstocks. The rootstocks 
are tiny bulbs. 


1. Color the flower blue. 

2. Color the part marked yellow. 

3. Color the bud blue. 

4. Color the leaves and stem green. 


1. Where have you seen these flow¬ 
ers growing? _ 


63 











2. How many petals has the Iris? __ 

3. What kind of root has this flower? _ 

4. Is the stem round or flattened ? __ 

5. Do these flowers keep well after you pick them? 

6. Are the leaves growing as opposites or alternates? 







VIOLET 



1. Color the flower light blue. 

2. Color the leaves and stem green. 

There are many different kinds of violets. Some may be found in the woods, others 
in meadows, and others in damp, marshy places. 

The violet has five petals, one pair above, a pair at each side, and one broad lower 
petal. This broad petal goes backward and makes a cup. This cup holds the nectai. 

The leaves and flowers are on separate stems. 

Did you know the violet has a secret ? She has a way of making seeds that few peo¬ 
ple know. 

The little fall violet makes her seeds. They do not look at all like violets. 'They stay 
very close to the root of the violet just above the ground. They are tiny pointed green 
buds that never open. When the seeds are ripe, the pod splits open and throws them out. 

Underline the words that make each sentence correct : 

1. Violets may be found in the woods, ocean, rocks. 

2. A violet has five leaves, stems, petals. 

3. A violet has a secret of making her own flowers, seeds, roots. 

4. Some colors of violets are blue, white, green. 

Underline the right answers : 

1. Violet seeds are planted by wind, by water, by plant itself. 

2. The flower has six, eight, five petals. 

3. The flowers and leaves are separate, are together. 

65 




WILD ROSE 



1. Color the center of rose yellow. 

2. Color the buds green. 

3. Color the leaves and stem green. 

The wild rose is kin to the dewberries and blackberries. It is a simple flower with 
five large petals. There are many stamens growing in a cluster around the pistil. This 
rose climbs over fences and trees. Long ago people planted wild roses called Cherokee 
roses out on the plains in long, high, thick rows to keep the wind from the cattle in winter. 
The vine is covered with thorns to keep the animals from eating them. Even the leaves 
have thorns on the under side. 

1. How many petals has this rose? ___ 

2. How many leaflets in each leaf? __ .. _ ’ _ ■: 

3. Is this a composite flower?______ - _!_ : -. 

4. What do we call this kind of leaf ?_ , _ 

5.. Of what use were Cherokee roses? __ ~ 


66 











A PUZZLE 


Here is a flower puzzle. Each space has a flower with its letters all mixed up. Can 
you spell the flower? If you can, put the right name by the right number. 



No. 1: 
No. 2: 
No. 3: 


No. 4: 
No, 5: 
No. 6: 


67 
















PAINTED TURTLE 



Paint the turtle with crayolas. 

Shell: Greenish black with red marking on edge. 
Head: Black with yellow marking. 

Legs: Black. 

Tail: Black, yellow marking. 

Rock: Brown. 

Water: Blue. 

Reeds: Green. 


6S 

























The turtle’s head, foot and tail may be seen at all times. 

His foot and legs have no bones. 

When frightened he draws within his shell. 

The upper shell has grown to his back bone. 

The lower shell has grown to his chest bone. 

There is no different species of turtle. 

The turtle’s eyelids are like ours. 

The sense of smell is well developed. 

The nostrils are small. 

The constant swallowing is caused by swallowing food. 

The claws are long and strong. 

There are five claws on the front foot and four on the back. 

Some species have web toes. 

Two turtles should always be kept in the same aquarium. 

The enemies of turtles are large fishes and other turtles. 

The turtle lays her eggs in the water or in the sand. 

1. Underline the name of the turtle that can close its shell: mud turtle, snapping turtle, 
wood terrapin, soft shell turtle, pond turtle, box turtle, spotted turtle. 

2. Tell where painted turtles lay their eggs._ 

3. Do turtles have,teeth?____ 

4. How do turtles spend the winter?_’___ 

5. What do land turtles eat that water turtles do not?_ 

6. How many toes has the front feet of a turtle ?_ . _ 

How many on the back feet? - __ - . 

7. How old do turtles often grow to 'be?_;__ - _ 

8. Tell how the turtle protects himself. _ 

9. Why should we protect turtles ?________ . .. ■ 


69 












THE BAT 



Bats are not birds as many people think. They are animals which are called mammals 
because they feed their babies on milk. Bats haven’t wings like a bird but have a very 
thin skin which surrounds their whole body and can be stretched out by the arms and legs 
and used as wings to fly about on. 

The bat is not harmful but does a great deal of good by eating mosquitoes and oth¬ 
er insect pests. They catch their food by flying with their mouths wide open. They hunt at 
dusk and early morning but fly some at night. 

They sleep during the daytime in a tree or some quiet corner of a house or barn and 
always hang by their hind feet, head downward. They cannot walk but can crawl in an 
awkward way. 

Some bats eat fruit, but the common brown bat, eats nothing but insects. The old 
saying, that “bats will get in your hair” is not true. They are very timid and will not 
trouble, anyone if left alone. 

The bat’s fur is very soft. The body looks very much like that of a mouse. The eyes 
are small, but bats can see fairly well. The ears are rather big and have a sort of cover 
that can close over the opening at will. The front legs correspond to'our arms. A claw 
or hook represents the thumb and the four fingers are long and slender, and help to hold 
out the skin of the wings. The hind feet are small but have five toes, each with a tiny 
claw. Bats generally sleep through the winter when it is cold and there are few insects to 
eat. The baby bats hang on the underside of the mother’s body when she flies. 

1. How do bats spend the winter? ___ : _ - 

2. How do they sleep usually ? ____ " 

3. At what time of day does the bat catch its food? ' __ 

70 













4. Why are bats said to be mammals? V 1 

5. Are bats birds or animals?_ 

6. Why should we not kill every one we see?_ 

7. Of what animal does the bat remind us?._ 

8. Does the bat bark, groan or make any loud noise? 

9. Why do many people think bats are birds ? __ 

10. Tell how bats carry their babies?_ - 

11. Are bull bats and bats the same?__ 

12. How does the bat catch its food?._ 


SPIDERS 

We have all seen spiders in our houses or gardens. Spiders have eight legs and 
are not insects. They belong to a family called Arianidre. There are hundreds of spiders 
but the ones we usually see are the house spider, the grass spider, the wolf spider, the 
crab spider and the garden spider. 

Spiders have four pairs of eyes. They have a fat, round abdomen but they do not 
have a separate thorax as insects do, for the head and thorax of the spider are all in one 
piece called a cephelorax. At the tip of the abdomen, we can see some little finger-like 
pairs of spinnerets. With these, the spider can spin several kinds of threads. There are 
usually at least two pairs of these spinnerets. 

House spiders do not make a pretty web. They build a platform on which to chase 
and catch their prey. The threads are rather dry and are not made into a pattern, but are 
jumbled over each other, this way and that. 

The grass spider builds its web in much the same way except that it is funnel shaped 
with a wide mouth that is spread out in the grass, in old woodpiles or in shrubs. 

The wolf spider lives in a hole in the ground. It lines the hole with silk webbing to 
keep the dirt from falling into the hole. The tarantula and trapdoor spider do the same 
thing. The wolf spider has a tower about an inch and a half or two inches high around 
its hole. Here it watches for insects and catches them by running after them or pounc¬ 
ing upon them suddenly. The tarantula catches its food the same way. Both these spid¬ 
ers feed mostly at night. 

The trapdoor spider gets its name from its round door made up of dirt and silk webs 
that fits very tightly over the opening of its hole. This spider seldom goes away from 
its nest. 

These spiders all lay their eggs in a large silk sack. When the little spiders hatch, 
they ride on the back of their mother until they are large enough to take care of them¬ 
selves. 


71 













1. Draw a web as a spider would spin it. Color the picture with crayolas. 

2. Underline the type of spider that spins this type of web: house spider, orb weaver, 
grass spider, wolf spider, trapdoor spider. 

3. What do we call the straight threads of the web?_ 

4. At what time of day does the spider mend its web or spin a new one?_ 

5. How many kinds of thread does the spider spin?_ 

6. Does the house spider spin this type of web?__ - 

7. How do we know a spider is not an insect? __ 

8. Give three differences between spiders and wasps. 

1. __ 

2 . .____ 

3. _____!_ 

9. Where are the spinnerets on the spider’s body ?__■_:_>__ 


72 





























The Spider and the Fey 

“Will you walk in to my parlor?” said the Spider to the Fly; 

“ 'Tis the prettiest little parlor that ever you did spy. 

The way into my parlor is up a winding stair, 

And I have many curious things to show when you are there.” 

“Oh, no, no,” said the little Fly; “to ask me is in vain, 

For who goes up your winding stair can ne’er come down again.” 

“I’m sure you must be weary, dear, with soaring up so high; 

Will you rest upon my little bed?” said the Spider to the Fly. 
“There are pretty curtains drawn around; the sheets are fine and thin. 

And if you like to rest awhile, I’ll snugly tuck you in!” 

“Oh, no, no,” said the little Spider; “for I’ve often heard it said, 

They never, never wake again who sleep upon your bed!” 

Said the cunning Spider to the Fly; “Dear friend, what can I do 
To prove the warm affection I’ve always felt for you? 

I have within my pantry good store of all that’s nice; 

I’m sure you’re very welcome—will you please to take a slice?” 

“Oh, no, no,” said the little Fly; “kind sir, that cannot be; 

I’ve heard what’s in your pantry, and I do not wish to see!” 

“Sweet creature!” said the Spider, “you’re witty and you’re wise; 

How handsome are your gauzy wings! How brilliant are your eyes 
I have a little looking-glass upon my parlor shelf; 

If you'll step in one moment, dear, you shall behold yourself.” 

“I thank you, gentle sir,” she said, “for what you’re pleased to say 
And bidding you good morning now, I’ll call another day.” 

The Spider turned him round about and went into his den, 

For well he knew the silly Fly would come soon back again; 

So he wove a subtle web in a little corner sly. 

And set his table ready to dine upon the Fly; 

Then came out to his door again, and merrily did sing: 

“Come hither, hither, pretty Fly, with the pearl and silver wing; 

Your robes are green and purple; there’s a crest upon your head; 

Your eyes are like the diamond bright, but mine are dull as lead!” 

Alas, alas! How very soon this silly little Fly, 

Hearing his wily, flattering words, came slowly flitting by; 

With buzzing wings she hung aloft, then near and nearer drew, 

Thinking only of her brilliant eyes and green and purple hue, 
Thinking only of her crested head. Poor, foolish thing! At last 
Up jumped the cunning Spider, and fiercely held her fast; 

He dragged her up his winding stair, into his dismal den, 

Within his little parlor—but she ne’er came out again! 

—Mary Howitt 

73 



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